To avoid a drunken driving arrest or crash, designate before you celebrate on New Year’s Eve.
Although no one really knows what the New Year will bring, everyone can take steps to make sure 2014 doesn’t start with a drunken driving arrest or crash.
“An effective way to avoid an arrest or a crash is to designate a sober driver before you celebrate,” says David Pabst, director of the Wisconsin State Patrol Bureau of Transportation Safety. “To help choose a designated driver, our Zero In Wisconsin (www.zeroinwisconsin.gov) program offers a free Drive Sober mobile app. Since the app was launched in March, more than 40,000 people have downloaded it.”
The Drive Sober app also includes a “Find-a-Ride” feature that uses a mobile device’s GPS to locate nearby taxi and mass transit services. Another popular feature is the blood alcohol estimator. The Drive Sober app can be downloaded by visiting the Zero in Wisconsin page on the WisDOT web (www.zeroinwisconsin.gov).
In addition to choosing a designated driver before your New Year’s Eve celebration begins, the State Patrol offers the following advice:
•If you’re feeling buzzed, you probably are over the 0.08 (alcohol concentration) limit and should not drive.
•Don’t allow friends to drive drunk no matter how much they protest.
•Some taverns and restaurants have programs to provide patrons with a safe ride home. Visit TLW’s Saferide page (www.tlw.org/saferide) for more information.